Oil conduit drill



May 24, 1955 F. WOHLFAHRT on. comaurr DRILL 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Nov. 16, 1953 INVENTOR. F/?ED Wem FAHRT -Ma;y 24, 1955 r-'-. WOHLFAHRT OIL CONDUIT DRILL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I INVENTOR. FRED WOHLFAHRT I 'l I' "I United States Patent %70&852v OIL CONDIII'ITDRILL Fred Wohlfahrt, Center Line, Mich. Applicatiqn November 16, 1953, SerialjNo, 392,206 2 Claims. (Cl. 77-68) This invention relates to high-speed drills prqvided With mean s for feeding coolant t o the cpt tingedges of the dr ill an cl tl1ence into the hpl low O f the drill Stein to remo ve cuttings With the coolant.

An object f thi s inyention is to, pr ovide a drill having a holl ow drill ster n provided ith a ported cutting tool, and Wj th a. spiral impeller qn the enter all of the stem for feeding cc' olant under priessure to. the cutting tool of the drill stern, and thence through the port in the cutting tip into the inter ior of the stern, whereby the cuttings areremoved as fgr rned, through the hollow Of the stem, to a poin t of disposal.

Another Qbj6t f the inve ntion is to pr0yidea drill as a boye s tated Whichthe spi ral impelle r is formed by one.oi: more 1iibson the outer-wall f the dril lstem, which i'ib or ribs when the drill s tem is rotating thrqugh a. guide bushing or honsing snppli ed wi th co t lant linder pressure boosi the. coolant pressure and stabilize the drill against vibration.

A- still further object of the invention is t provide a drill of the typeset fprth above in wh ich the irnpeller is providec kby qne or more spiral grooves formed in the outer Wall of the drill stern A still fnrt her obict of the inventiqn i s to provide a drill as above.set for th, having a solid ca rbide cuytter inse rt in the end=o f thestem, the cutte1= having an opening which provides eornmun ication betw een the e gterior and interior ofthe stem.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a drill cf the. character set forth above, in whi ch one end ofthe. stern is slottedto. Ieceive carbide cutting and guide elements.

A still furtherobject of the: invention is. to. provide a drill as above set forth, With m'eans for supplying lubricant er coolant under pressure alqng the exterior surface of the drill to the cuttirig tool bf=the' drill, so that a cushion of coolant rnay lje provided which surrnnnds;the entire drill stem, to thereby stabilize it against vibration and to bo ost the pressure cf the coolant delivered to the cuttjng teol, the drill cuttlng element being provided. with an op ening thnongh Which the coolant may' flq.w int o the hollbw of the stern. to carry away cutt ings t 0 a pqint of dispos al.

Other objecfs of the invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains, from the following description and drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a more or less diagramrnatic view of a drilling appaartus provided With a drill stem, arrangecl and constructed in accordance With an embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 1A is a continuation of the upper part of Fig. 1;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal view, partly in section of a drill stem embodying a form of the invention;

Fig. 3 is an end view of the drill shown in Fig. 2, illustrating the arrangement of the carbide cutting and guide elements;

Fig. 4 is a view in side elevation of the cutting tip end 2,708852 Fatented May 24, 1955 of the drill stem shown in Fig. 2, the view in Fig. 4 being turned With respect to the view shown in Fig 2;

Fig, 5 i s a view in section, taken on line VV on Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the end f the drill shown in Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a view taken on the angle indicated in Fig 2;

Fig. 8 is a view of the end 0f the drill stem shown. in

Fig. 2, opposite the cu tting t ip end;

Fig. 9 is a partial view of a drill stem such as shown in Fig. 2, provided With a modified form of car bide enttingelement;

Fig. 10 is an end view of the element shown in Fig. 9

Fig. 11 is an end view of the tern of the drill; and

Fig. 12 is a view, partly in section, of a modified form. qlfdrill.

In Fig. 1 of the dr awings, a WOI'k piece Wis illnstratecl in whi ch holes are to be drilled by means of a dri lling apparatus 1. Drilling apparatns, 1 includes a drill 2 disp.osed withina housing 3, having an annular flange or base '4.provided With seals 5 adapted to engage the Work piece surface. T0 apply pressure to the Work piece surface, the honsing 3 may be provided with toggles 7 which, as shown, when actuated to a substantially straight position, urge the housing 3 firmly upon the W0rk piece, thereby eflebti ng a seal. The drill stem 2 is coupled to a drive shaft 8 that is slidably and rotatably disposed in a gland, 9. The dri ve shaft 8 may be provided With a pulley 10 er other suitable means, throug h Which the drive shaftand stem 21nay b e rotated.

The drill may be fed into the work piece by a feeding dfevi ce (not shown) which applies a force t0 a thrust bearing T. B., see Fig. 1A

The drill stem 2 and the drive shaft 8 are hollow, so as to pmvide communication With the bottorn of the hole 11 bein g drilled in the W0rk piece W.

Coblant or lubricant is snpplied under pressure to the housing 3 from a supply pipe 12. The coolant fills the Space ab out the drill stem and fiows dqwnwardly on the on tside of the stem into the hole 11, and thence through an opening in the cutting end of the, drill into the interior thereof, and thence outwardly through the hollow 0f the stem and the drive shaft 8 to discharge. The ch ips er cnttings are carried by. the coolant into the hollow of the stem to discharge. Since the chips flow With the coolant on the inside of the drill stiem, these cuttings or chips will not mar or score the drilled surface.

The drill stern may be constructed as shown in Figs 2 to 8, inclusive. As illustrated in Fig. 2, the drill stem 2 is of hollow tubular st ock, and is provi ded on its. exterio r surface With a spiral impeller. The impeller may be formed by one or more spiral ribs 14. The 'par ticular st em shown in Fig 2 is proyided With four spiral ribs 14. The spiral ribs 14 are preferably formed as an integral;part f the drill stem body, in dies in any suitable manner. As shown in Fig. 11 the drill stern is r.otated in a clockwis e directien, as ind'icated b.y the arrqw R, and that the 1:i bs 1 4; ar e so formed as to act efiectiyely as a boqster P p .q h 99 31 which fl d m; the Q idb9fih drill stern in the space between a bushing 14" and the outside of the drill stern. As illustrated, the trailing surfaces of the ribs 14 have shoulders 14a that are radial to the center of the drill Stern. The leading surfaces of the ribs 14 are disposed at an angle a to a line 14c Which is tangent to a eircuit at the base of the rib. The inclined face of the rib is identified by reference character 14b.

One end of the stem 2 is pr-ovided With a cutting element 15. As shown in Figs. 4 to 7, inclusive, the end 0f the Stein is saw-cut at its diameter, to accommodate a carbide insert 16. As shown in Fig. 3, the insert extends across the tube and is received in slots at diametricallyopposite sides thereof. The cutting edge 17 of the insert falls 011 the diameter of the drill stem, as shown. One and of the insert 16 is enlarged, as at 18, to serve as a guide. As shown, the gnide 18 is oiT-center, as at 19, with respect to the cutting edge. The stem is also slotted at right angles to the cutting element 16, to accornmodate a carbide insert guide 20.

The carbide insert 16 may be secured in place by brazing the same to the stock of the stem at the points indicated in Figs. 3 110 6, inclusive. As shown in Fig. 5, the space between the trailing edge of the insert 16 and the guide 20 is filled by a backing member 22 of streng steel. This insert 22 closes, in effect, the portion of the end of the tube on the trailing side of the cutting edge of the insert 16.

The space in front of the cutiing edge of the insert 16 is open, so that there is comrnunication between the hole 11 being drilled, and the interior of the drill stem 2.

When the stem shown in Figs. 2 to 8, inclusive, is used in apparatus as illustrated schematically in Fig. 1, the point of the drill stem is centered over the center of the hole to be drilled. The housing 3 may then be lowered 10 position and clarnped. When the housing has been clamped, the drill stem is rotated by the drive rneans at the speed required. A feed mechanism, not shown, which supplies a feeding force downwardly on the drive shaft 8, is then applied. The coolant is also Supplied through pipe 12. The coolant is supplied at such a pressure that the stem 2 is cushioned by an enveloping fluid at such pressure as to hydraulically stabilize it and darnp out vibrations. The rlbs on the drill stem act to feed the coolant in a spiral path in the direction of feed of the drill. This feeding of the coolant by the spiral ribs 14 tends to increase or boost the supply pressure of the coolant, and to further stabilize the drill, particularly in the hole I1. By

damping out vibrations of the drill in the manner indiw cated, the drill may be operated at higher speeds withont subjecting the carbide cutting elements to the shock of vibration. Carbicle cutting tools of this type are subject to breakage if exposed to excessive vibration under load.

As the coolant is advancecl into the bottom of the hole 11, it flows through the open space at the front of the cutting edge of the carbide insert 16, into the hollow of the drill stem and the drive shaft S. The coolant flowing as described, carries with it the cuttings. These cuttings and the coolant are discharged from the drive shaft to a surnp or collector (not shown), in which the chips or cuttings may setile out and the coolant re-used.

Instead of constrneting the cntting edges of the drill, as shown in Figs. 2 to 7, inclusive, the cutting tool of the drill may be constructed as shown in Figs. 9 and 10. As there illustrated, the end of the hollow drill stem 24 is beveled to receive a solid 01' one-piece carbide cutting tip insert 25. The inner portion of the tip is cone-shaped, as at 26, and the surfaces of that cone are brazed 01' otherwise secured to the drill stem 24. The tip or carbide cutting element 25 is provided with a cutting edge 26, as shown in Fig. 10. A portion of the cutting tip 25 extending frorn the center to the guide 27, is solid, as at 28. The hollow portion 28 communicates with the interior of the drill stem 24, so that when the drill is drilling into a work piece, as in Fig. l, the coolant which is fed down over the outside of the drill stem to the drill point at the bottom of the hole 11, flows from the drill point to the opening 28 into the drill pipe, thereby carrying with it the cuttings to discharge.

The drill stem 24 is also provided with helical ribs 29, which are sirnilar to, and serve the same function as, the ribs 14, and which are preferably integral with the stem.

In cases where srnall diameter holes are to be bored and a drill stem of small diameter is required, the drill stem may be formed as shown in Fig. 12. As there illustrated, the drill stem 31 is hollow and provided with a carbide cutter or tool 25, similar to the one shown in Fig. 9. The body of the stem is provided with a plurality of helical grooves 32, which extend from a point near the top of the stem to a point adjacent the tool 25. These grooves act to force the coolant downwardly to the bottom of the hole being drilled, and to boost the pressure of the supply of coolant. By providing spiral grooves in the drill stem, as shown in Fig. 12, the drill is adapted for drilling smaller diameter holes than the drill shown in Fig. 2.

The illustrated embodiments of the invention are subje :t to modification without departing from the spirit or the scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. In a high speed drilling apparatus comprising a housing having a longitudinal bore and including a base to align with a piece of work in which a hole is to be drilled, a seal 011 the base to engage the workpiece, means to urge the housing toward the workpiece into sealing engagernent therewith, a hollow drive shaft mounted in the bore of the housing for rotary and axial sliding movement, means to seal the space within the bore between the drive shaft and the housing, means to rotate the drive shaft and move it axially in the bore of the housing, a hollow drill stem detachably connected to the drive shaft rneans to supply liquid coolant nnder pressure to the space within the bore between the drive shaft and the housing, a spiral impeller ribon the outer peripheral surface of the drill stem extending in a left-hand counterclockwise pitch and arranged to co-act with the opening in the workpiece to form a pumping unit adapted to force the coolant fluid with increased pressure and direct cuttings against the centrifugal force of the rotary drill stem inward and reversely through said drill stem and rotary shaft, and a hardened cutting element secured to the free end of the hollow drill stem, the cutting element having a cutting edge substantially on the diameter of the drill stem.

2. The invention defined in claim 1 wherein the spiral impeller rib on the outer peripheral surface of the drill stem has a leading surface disposed substantially tangentially to the drill stem and a trailing surface extending substantially radially to the drill stem.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 800,894 Baldwin Oct. 3, 1905 1238537 Lloyd Aug. 28, 1917 1,281420 Reid Oct. 15, 1918 2,182263 Probert Dec. 5, 1939 Morgan et a1. May 6, 1941 

